10/01/2012

Locals Serve Public Lands

Along the Pope Canyon Trail, courtesy Tuleyome

Saturday, September 29, 2012, an
estimated 170,000 people, including many in California, participated in the 18th
annual National Public Lands Day. Since 1994, non-profits from across the
country, as well as eight federal agencies, and state, regional and local
governments have participated in the annual day of caring for public lands,
making it the nation's largest single-day volunteer event for public lands.

“We’re thrilled that so many people are getting excited about improving and
maintaining public lands,” said Sara Husby-Good, Executive Director and
Campaign Coordinator of Tuleyome a non-profit located in Woodland
and Napa, CA. Tuleyome is working with the Sierra Club and others to permanently protect 321,000 acres
of public lands in the Berryessa Snow Mountain region. Husby adds, “This is a
beautiful place that is loved and utilized by so many people. We want these
special lands to be protected for many future generations to enjoy.”

The
purpose of National Public Lands Day is to educate America about the need for
shared stewardship of these valued, irreplaceable lands; build partnerships
between the public sector and the local community based upon mutual interests
in the enhancement and restoration of America's public lands; and improve
public lands for outdoor recreation, with volunteers assisting land managers in
hands-on work.

This
year volunteers in every state visited parks, lakes, beaches, wildlife
preserves and forests to help protect these special and wild lands that belong
to all Americans. They improved and rehabilitated the lands and facilities for
public use; such as recreation, education, and exercise.

In
northern California, a crowd gathered to improve the network of trails in the
public lands of the Berryessa Snow Mountain region. They worked on clearing a
section of trails that will stretch from Pope Creek to Putah Creek in Napa
County. With abundant opportunities for outdoor recreation, including hiking,
biking, fishing, horseback riding, boating and swimming the area is already a
prime, if little known, recreation destination.
Just a stone’s throw away from Sacramento and the Bay Area, the public
lands in the Berryessa Snow Mountain region are some of the most dazzling and
diverse in the country.

Last
year, National Public Lands Day contributed an estimated $17 million in
volunteer services to public lands, which included planting about 100,000
trees, shrubs and other native plants, as well as building and maintaining
approximately 1,500 miles of trails. Volunteers also collected an estimated
23,000 pounds of invasive plants and removed an about 500 tons of trash from
trails and other places.

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